If
you close your eyes, you might think you are listening to a politician.
"Hello, Star! How’s it going, Mike? Are you feeling better,
Jonas?" But the friendly visitor isn’t running for public office,
he’s trying to save people’s lives. Qayyim Durant is a street outreach
worker who is part of a unique team made up of representatives from four
United Way agencies, working together to help the homeless in Kansas City.
On a cold and rainy night, Qayyim of Swope Parkway Health Center joins several volunteers handing out free food from a Salvation Army truck. Other volunteers made the hot chicken stew earlier, and now the "Honk and Holler" crew is serving it with chips, Gatorade and donated sandwiches. Tonight, they’ll feed more than 70 street people, many of whom Qayyim knows by their first name.
Star lives under a red, white and blue tarp in a little camp near the railroad tracks, back in the woods. Jonas hangs with a half-dozen or so others who are homeless. "Wolf" and his buddies live behind an empty warehouse, huddled around a fire for heat. They share food, clothing, and cigarettes… money when they have it…and a lot of beer and wine.
As Qayyim drives the Salvation Army truck, he talks about his job these past seven years. His goal is helping homeless men and women living on the streets. If they have drug or alcohol problems, he tries to get them into treatment. If they have financial problems, he tries to get them into a temporary shelter and some help cleaning up their credit, so they can rent an apartment.
In
addition to food, Qayyim and the "Honk and Holler" volunteers hand
out blankets, hats, gloves, socks and personal hygiene kits (wash cloth, soap,
toothbrush, toothpaste, and safety razors). They’re giving the homeless what
they need to survive, and also making friends. Qayyim says, "We don’t
judge them or criticize how they live, we offer help and support. We want to
establish a relationship of trust so that if they have a health problem or
decide they’re ready to get off the street, they’ll ask us for help."
Qayyim has a pocket full of bus passes, but if it means coming back the next
day to give them a ride, he’ll be there.
- Last year, Salvation Army and the Red Cross served 20 thousand meals through its "Honk and Holler" program.
- Swope Parkway Health Center provided outreach services for 6,777 different homeless people. They received drug and alcohol counseling, medical care, financial counseling or help finding temporary shelter.
- There is no question that some people on the streets have mental problems. That’s where TMC Behavioral Health Network comes in. Their caseworkers and outreach workers identify and approach folks who might be suffering from mental illness. They work to gain their trust and to convince them to come in for treatment.
Some are drifters, just passing through. Some are military veterans who feel rejected. Others can’t handle the pressure of everyday life. You’ll find men and women, Black, White, Asian, Indian and Hispanic who are down on their luck, and some who just like the camaraderie and freedom of the streets. It’s hard for most of us to understand, but they want to live that way.
Caseworkers
say we had approximately 15,000 homeless people in greater Kansas City at some
point last year. On any given night, up to 200 people are living on the
streets. Whatever their reasons, we can’t pretend they don’t exist.
So the next time you see someone holding a sign along the street, remember CFC is working through a dozen different local nonprofit agencies to help. Your donations support counselors and outreach workers focused on getting homeless people off the streets and into emergency shelters and transitional housing through places like the Salvation Army, reStart and Metropolitan Lutheran Ministries. You’re providing emergency medical care, drug and alcohol treatment, and job training. It can be a long and difficult journey, but you are helping through CFC.